Met by Coincidence
by sincerely- scripted
Summary: AU. "Met by coincidence, conversated by choice, and fell in love by fate."- The story of a heartbroken girl and a preoccupied boy. Neither looking for love. What will happen when fate takes over in the form of a shoelace?
1. Coincidence

Idea for this story came to me while on a college tour over the weekend. I have so solid ideas for the story and it will be a multi-chapter.

This is AU. All the characters will hopefully make some sort of appearance but the story is mostly centering around Philby and Willa and how they fall in love.

Enjoy.

* * *

"Met by coincidence, conversated by choice, and fell in love by fate."

* * *

"Are you coming out with us tonight?" asked Finn.

Finn Whitman, a tall, charming, and friendly young man was talking to his roommate, Dell Philby. The two went to school in southern Florida. In the heat of the day, they sat in the middle of one of the many student courtyards on the school campus. Finn's roommate, who preferred to be called Philby, a brainy, red-haired guy who had come to the USA a few years back and had he accent to prove it, were sitting around a picnic table. Philby was now occupied with his computer screen to look up.

"No," he told him curtly.

Over the past year, he and their other roommate, Terrence Maybeck, had constantly tried to get the boy to go out with them. It had become a cycle of sorts. No matter how many times they asked he always refused to go. Every Friday the same response came.

"C'mon," Finn encouraged his friend, "just an hour or two. Then you can go back to the room and study your little heart out the rest of your life."

None of the words phased Philby. Finn wasn't even sure he heard him.

"You know my girl, Amanda? You like her right?"

"Yes, I remember her," Philby responded quickly as he searched the screen for answers that Finn didn't know.

"Well, she is coming tonight. I could ask her to bring along some of her girlfriends. You like girls, right? We could find you a nice girl."

Philby looked up from his laptop. "I have to study, Finn. Sorry," he told his friend.

"What could you possibly have to study?!"Finn stood up from his seat and shouted, exasperated. "School just started last week!"

"So?!"

Finn gave up. He threw his belongings in his backpack and stormed off from his freckled friend who didn't even seem to notice.

* * *

"You cannot be serious, right now?" Amanda was infuriated. "Are you kidding me Willa? We just finished the second week of classes and you are going to spend the first real weekend in the library."

"Mm-hm," Willa answered.

Willa sat on her bed, papers strewn about on either side of her making an arc. She bent over, causing her dark wavy hair to fall over her shoulder, looking at each one individually.

"You're crazy," there was a twinge of laughter in Amanda's voice.

"Sorry, but I can't go out tonight."

"So for the next," Amanda took a glance at her orange watch wrapped around her left wrist, "six hours you are going to be studying? That's not healthy. You need some socialization in there. Get out of this room."

"I didn't say I was going to stay here," Willa looked up. "Once I find this Bio paper, I am going to go to the pool, swim a few laps and THEN I will go to the library and study. See I'm going out."

Amanda frowned at her friend. Willa was possibly the sweetest, kindest, most loving person she had ever known.

"Remember when we were growing up? Nobody seemed to care about me, but you did. You cared for me." Amanda sat down on the edge of the messy bed. Willa watched her move but said nothing. "We went on and on talking about love, we read way too many fairy tales, and we wondered what it would be like to experience it one day. That time is now, Wills." Amanda put a comforting hand on her friend's knee. They shared a knowing look.

"I can't," Willa told her. "Not tonight."

"Why the hell not?!"

Willa resisted the urge to laugh at her friend's behavior. "Because I really need to go to the gym, that's why. I need to stop eating those ice creams in the food court. And after I swim a few laps I am not going to go out for a night on the town with you and your boyfriend."

"That's what I am saying Will! You don't have to come with me and Finn. We can find you a guy of your own."

Willa jumped from her bed. She didn't care that she didn't find her paper. She didn't care that her bed was a mess now. She needed to get out of there before the conversation took a turn for the worse. Before his name came up and she did something she regretted. Willa hastily put her shoes running shoes on and looked around for her gym bag. She cursed herself for being so unorganized.

Amanda knew Willa's plan and made a move for the door to block the dark-haired girls exit.

"Is this about Spencer?" she asked in a whisper.

Willa found her bag and moved to the door, keeping her head down.

"Maybe," she answered in whisper as well.

It was then that Amanda realized her mistake. She had broken a promise that she had made months ago: don't say his name. Willa had cried for a week back then. It was heartbreaking to see a friend like that. Amanda let down her arms and moved to the side to let Willa through the door. After the wide, red-eyed girl made her way through Amanda closed the door to her friend dorm room and made her way to her own, down the hall.

Willa adjusted her hair around h head to shield her face. She shuffled down the corridor to the staircase. Finn, Amanda's boyfriend, whom she had only meet two or three times, passed by. They acknowledged each other with small smiles and head nods. He did not seem too happy to Willa. But she wasn't in a talking mood either. With the red and black gym bag slung over her shoulder, Willa walked with determined strides. She hustled through the sidewalks filled with people on their way into town and locked her sights on the large red sign that indicated her destination.

* * *

It wasn't that people were uninterested in Philby. With the build of a soccer player and an accent that made girls swoon, it was no secret that girls wanted his attention. They were all beautiful. And often times Philby had a hard time turning them away but he was focused on school work. He'd much rather be spending his time being productive with his laptop than chatting with girls that would eventually get bored with his preoccupation with his education.

The little exclamation point at the bottom of his computer screen pinged. A talk bubble opened on the display. _TWO PERCENT BATTERY LIFE_, it said.

Damn it, Philby thought. He quickly closed the screen sending the laptop into sleep mode until he could resume his studying with the battery plugged in. He boy put shoved his papers and his computer into his tan messenger bag and slung it over his shoulder.

Philby didn't believe in destiny. He supposed that everything happens for a reason but thought that fate and the future could be easily changed with the decisions that happen in the now. Decisions like whether or not to take the time to tie a shoelace.

As Philby turned around he caught sight of a girl headed his way. She wasn't moving towards him rather he stood between her and her destination. Her quick paced strides caused the hair to blow behind her revealing a beautiful face. Philby wasn't one to be struck by a girl but something compelled him to this one. And he had only seen her for a second. A single moment, before he saw it all going down. Literally. Her indomitable walk was nothing against an untied shoelace. Two paces before Philby, the girl tripped.


	2. Reckless

I had way too much fun writing this chapter. Let's leave it at that.

Enjoy!

* * *

Willa felt her evening couldn't get any worse.

She felt herself going down. To catch herself before hitting the pavement, Willa held out her arms. The girl barely caught wind before falling still. But she wasn't on the ground. Someone had put out their arms and caught her mid fall. He or she had saved her from some scraps and bruising and most importantly, they had saved her from embarrassing herself.

"Thank you," she wheezed, the breath knocked out of her. Willa adjusted herself into a standing position. The person who had come to her rescue still held her as if she were fragile and would collapse as soon as they released their grip. Willa looked down to the traitor shoe. "Stupid shoelace," she said. "You really saved me there."

The red-faced girl looked up to her savior. He was taller than her, red hair, freckled face. She hadn't seen him around campus before, she would've remembered. A good-looking guy like this would not go unnoticed. She studied his face looking for any sort of recognition.

He smiled, a charming, dazzling smile that made Willa go light-headed.

"Not a problem," his teeth gleamed. Philby looked down at his arms. They were still wrapped around the girl. "Oh, umm… sorry," he shifted awkwardly to let her go.

_Great,_ he thought, _she probably thinks I'm a-a crazy person . . . or something._

Willa shifted uncomfortably. She adjusted her fallen gym bag back on to her shoulder. Her eyes locked again on the entrance to the recreation facility behind the boy's head.

"I should-uh," Willa stuttered. Her tongue was tied. "I should get going." She turned her back on him and began to walk away. Willa made it three paces, then abruptly turned around hoping her face wasn't too red, to shouted once more, "Thank you!"

Philby was still in the same place she left him. His hands were holding on to the strap of his bag across his chest. He let go with his right hand and waved her off. Willa spun around and continued on her way to the gym, face palming the entire way.

The gym held no interest to Willa. When she arrived she was extremely distracted with her recent embarrassment. Her plan to swim laps did not follow through. Instead, she went for a jog. Her preoccupation with the day caused her to overrun. What had started out as a short run around the indoor track, turned into an hour of going around in circles. By the time she made it out it was seven o'clock. Amanda and Finn would be long gone with their friends. The thought cheered Willa up immensely. She hurriedly showered and cleaned up, ready to go back to her dorm without fear that Amanda would show up and drag her out.

Willa was outside before she saw the raindrops. The day couldn't give her a break for two minutes. _Seriously?!_ She screamed through her mind a she looked up into the sky at the drops of rain falling on her.

Willa raised her gym bag to cover her head and ran into the nearest building for shelter. Lucky her, the building she entered was the Coffee Lodge. It was a small place set up to look almost like a ski lodge. Willa had never been inside this place before. Being from Florida she thought it was a little odd. She supposed it built on campus for those students from out-of-state who were homesick. Wood paneled the ceiling and walls. A large stone fireplace lined one wall. Couches and chairs were scattered around in little clusters. Not many were in the lounge, just a few who were occupied with computers or books. It was cozy and warm on the inside. Willa laughed at her luck,_ the rain pours on me so I stumble into the warmest place on campus_.

The barista wearing tight pants to her left asked her if she wanted anything. Willa responded with a request for a hot chocolate and handed him her school card. She received her steaming cup and rushed to the chair closest to the fireplace. As Willa settled into the comfort of the coz, winged, leather chair, she closed her eyes letting the warmth radiating from the fire dry her. She smiled in relaxation.

"Excuse me," an accented voice said to her left. Willa knew from when she entered that there was another chair to her left. The voice was a man's and was oddly familiar. Willa opened her eyes and rolled her head to the left to see who was addressing her. "Are you following me?"

"Oh my god," Willa whispered, straightening up in her seat. The boy to her left hidden in the tall chair was none other than the freckled red-head who saved her from a face plant into the pavement not two hours ago. He laughed at her tone. She had tried over her run to get any thoughts of him, guys, Spencer, dating, and meeting people out of her head. And now a chance encounter brought him back to her. "I'm not following you, I swear. I didn't know someone else was sitting here. I will leave you be."

Willa got up.

"No, no, don't leave. It's fine I'm finishing up here," he gestured to his computer then looked back to the wet-haired girl. "You are actually the reason I am here."

Willa took a step back and narrowed her eyes, "Are you following me?" she repeated his question.

Philby laughed. "Not consciously, I'm not." Willa sat down in the chair again.

"Alright, explain. How am I the reason you are here?" she demanded curious.

The boy moved forward in his seat so he sat on the edge. He moved his computer on his lap to show her the screen full of numbers and graphs.

"I was researching out in the courtyard before. My battery was going to die so I packed up quickly to find an outlet. That's when I saw you," he smiled at her making Willa's heart race just a little. "I caught you before you fell. I think that makes me a hero. Don't I deserve a kiss or something now?" He laughed at his own joke.

Willa's jaw dropped and her face turned red. She shook her head astonished with the stranger.

"Okay," she said, "so you saw me. How does that make me the one stalking you and what does your battery have to do with any of this?"

"I was busy saving you so my battery ran out before I got here. I lost all my work for the afternoon. It was all part of your master plan to keep me in this place all night. That way you could come and find me later."

"Ooo-r," Willa exaggerated, "I am just a _clumsy girl_ who was in a too much of a hurry to tie her shoes and you are an_ idiot_ who forgot to charge your electronics and its _pure coincidence_ that brought us together again."

"Whatever you say stalker." In a quiet voice he added, "No one has ever called me an idiot before."

Willa rolled her eyes, surprised at how easy conversation with this stranger was coming. She took a sip of her hot chocolate and nestled back into the warmth of the chair.

"So," she asked, "what is this 'oh so important' research on?"

Philby leaned forward again, "Well," he started.

They talked for hours. Just the two of them in the small coffee shop. Philby told Willa about his research, how he was going to school for computer science. She was the first girl who actually seemed interested in what he was talking about. Like she actually cared about what he was saying. Whenever he spoke to someone over his work they would usually nod along, pretending they knew what he was saying, but not her. No, she understood perfectly even though he used the computer jargon. Philby could see the curiosity in her eyes. Before they knew it, the conversation had gone from computer security to stories of computer stupidity. Back and forth they shared personal stories and then those of their friend's embarrassment.

They were each holding their stomachs laughing when the barista sauntered over to them, two cups of hot chocolate later.

"I'm sorry," he told them, "the lounge is closing now."

The pair looked around. Sure enough, the few other patrons had left leaving the couple there in front of the fireplace alone. They got up from their seats and moved to the door. Willa was mentally hitting herself for getting so distracted. She turned to say her goodbye to the boy but he spoke.

"Where is your dorm?" Willa raised an eyebrow at him. He answered her by pulling out an umbrella from his bag and nodding out the door. "You just got dry. You think I am going to let you walk back through the rain?"

The boy stepped outside the door under the small green awning. He opened the dark green umbrella and held out an elbow for Willa to hold. Willa bit her lip. A nervous habit she had never been able to shake.

"I'm in Bell Hall," she informed him. "Where are you?"

"Adam Hall."

"That's on the other side of campus!"

Again he held out his arm for her to take. "Remember, _I'm_ following _you_."

Willa laughed and nodded her head but didn't take his arm. Instead she began to walk closely to him without touching. The rain was pouring down hard making it impossible to have a real conversation. Willa noted how the boy's hair looked like flames in the light of the lamp posts. It was a comfortable walk for the two. All too soon, they reached Willa's dorm. The pair walked into to the front entryway of the large building. Willa stopped in front of the stairs leading to the second floor and turned to say goodbye. She took a step back to gain height on the lowest step. Before Willa knew what she was doing she leaned forward and gave a small kiss on the cheek to Philby who in turn blushed.

"That was for being my hero," Willa said. The line went back to their previous conversation before.

"Anytime. But I did save you twice, you know?" Willa looked at him quizzically. "When you were falling and just now I saved you from the rain," he told her. she rolled her brown eyes at him. Philby could help himself but note how beautiful they were. How they sparkled under the incandescent overhead lights.

Wanting to leave before she did anything else irrational and stupid, Willa hustled up the stairs. She stopped herself before jumped the last step when she heard the squeal of the glass door opening.

_Don't do it_, she told herself. But her mind didn't listen. Willa shot down the stairs back to the helpful stranger. She snuck through the door before it closed completely. The young man turned around the last-minute at the sound of her footsteps. Willa collided into him, crashing her lips on to his. In a moment of surprise, Philby dropped the umbrella leaving the two standing in the rain. It was reckless and thoughtless and tactless and so much more. But something washed over her mind in the moments of them walking home. It was as if the earlier conversation with Amanda had somehow been warning Willa of what was headed her way if she would just open her eyes. Or maybe it was just coincidence that she had stumbled upon this. And him. And this loss of self control.

When Willa stepped back, the boy looked bewildered but smiled at her anyways.

"You were right," she admitted. "You did save me twice."

The girl bit her lip nervously. The rain pouring down on her now matted her dark bacngs to her forehead. Slowly, she stepped back until feeling the door behind her. She turned and opened it. Leaving the stunned stranger out in the rain.


	3. Mysteries

The Sharpie squeaked. A fat X crossed out the yesterdays date on Willa's 'Disney Heroes' calendar that hung over her bed. The smell of the marker burned her nose as she counted. _One. Two. Three_. _That was it! Only three weeks, _she thought. Three weeks since she kissed the stranger. It felt like so much more. She would have believed it was months if she hadn't been keeping track. Willa hadn't seen him since she left him out in the rain.

The face of Aladdin on the calendar seemed to be laughing at her. Willa fell back on her bed, crashing down on her pillow; she stared at the pebbled ceiling, thinking. She couldn't complain about not seeing him. She wasn't exactly looking for him. She didn't even know the guy. She kissed him and left. She didn't know his name. But she would glance the crowd every once in a while for a spot of red hair. Willa would take a peek at the multitude of students around her when in line for coffee, at the library, at the hundred people in the lecture hall. Never did she see the face or hear the accent.

No one knew about her relationship either. She didn't let it slip to Amanda or Jess or Charlene (her roommate). That night she slipped in her room silently though Charlene was not in. Willa slipped in sweats and sat on her bed smiling. She felt better than she had in a long time. A book was open on her comforter covered lap but it remained unread. Eventually she fell asleep. And that was three weeks ago. Willa did the same thing most nights now. Lay down with a book to study or to read. Watch her favorite show on her computer. Eventually she would become distracted with one thing or another and just sit there. Just thinking.

Willa continued to stare at the ceiling some more. She could have been sleeping with her eyes open for all anyone knew. She was un-reactive until a hand jot out above her eyes stunning her out of stupor.

"Willa!" the shrill voice yelled. "Have you even been listening to me?"

"Wh-what?" Willa sat up.

The hand was that of her roommates. Charlene was a bubbly blonde girl with all the looks of an all-American cheerleader. In fact she was a cheerleader in high school. The girls hadn't gone to the same high school but lived just across town. They only meet when discovered they were scheduled to room together freshman year. It was a rocky relationship at first. Too awkward to talk to each other.

"Blue skirt or red skinny's?" the blonde asked. Two hangers with the attire where in either hand. She switched their placement in front of her.

Willa ran her fingers through her wavy hair.

"Where are you going?"

"It's the first Friday of the month. It's movi`e night silly!"

Movie night was a big thing on campus. Everyone gathered on the green hill in front of the main hall. A huge screen was created on the side of the chemistry building.

"Umm, go with the blue. It will bring out your eyes."

"You are totally right," Charlene mumbled to herself. "Now for you," she said much louder.

"No, no ,no!" Willa slid her back against the wall clutching the torn novel she had tried to read before to her chest. "I was just going to stay here, in my nice comfy bed, reading my book. I don't need to go out tonight."

"That's what you always say," Charlene lowered her head to give her roommate the 'puppy-dog eyes'. "I know you want to go out. You can come with me, and we will have lots and lots of fun."

Willa gave a deep sigh, "I'm not going."

One thing Charlene was good at was glaring. The look she gave Willa when she said she was not going to go with her would send shivers down your spine.

"You met someone. I know you, Willa," she started. "I know you meet someone. And now you are going to come with me tonight. We are going to hang out and watch the movie and you are going to tell me about this mystery person."

"There is no 'mystery guy'," Willa lied defensively.

Charlene rolled her eyes, "Oh please. You have been in La La Land for weeks. You either met someone or … no there is no or, you met someone and now you're keeping it from me. Spill."

"I did not meet anyone worthy of you knowing," she told her friend. "No 'mystery guy'."

"Ooh," said a new voice from the hall, "mystery guy. I came at the right time." Amanda shuffled in from the hall. Her sister, Jess, followed behind her. Jess was a quiet girl who went to high school with Willa. Her always changing hairstyle of the day was a light, golden brown color done up in a pony-tail.

"Hey Amanda, hey Jess," Willa waved. "What can we do for you guys?"

"We wanted to see if you guys had an extra blanket for the movie tonight. But now that I hear something about a secret guy you are hiding from us I wanna know more about that."

Amanda sat on the edge of the Charlene's bed directly across from where Willa and Charlene sat. Jess leaned against the pale wood closet door.

Willa took a moment to look each of them in the eyes.

"If there was a relationship going on between me and some guy," she started, "You guys would know about it. But there in none. Zip. Nada. So don't get so freaked out about this."

"But," came Jess in her sing-song voice, "you did meet someone." She said it as a fact. It wasn't a question. Jess was weird that way. She knew what happened or what would happen before anyone else. She called herself lucky but in some cases, such as this one, Willa would fill with terror at just how much she knew.

The other two girls looked to Willa expectantly.

The dark-haired girl just shook her head, "It's not a crime to meet people."

Charlene and Amanda squealed with excitement. "You got to tell us everything?" "Where did you meet him?" "What does he look like?" "Big and strong? I bet he likes to go to the library?" "How long have you known him?"

The questions that bombarded Willa sent her head spinning. Then there was Jess.

"Whoa-whoa guys," she held up a hand to the two girls, and then looked to Willa. "What's his name?"

Willa glared. "I don't have to answer these questions," she told them.

"C'mon Wills," Charlene put a hand on her friends knee. "What's his name?"

Willa bit her lip, unsure of what or what not to tell them. The debater in herself gave up. "I don't know," she admitted.

* * *

Philby walked into his dorm drenched in sweat. Lately he had found more and more excuses to be outside of the small room. He would study in the libraries during the hours he knew they would be packed. Purposely leave a building during rush hours just to get a glimpse of the girl he met three weeks ago. Just to see the sway of her long, dark, wavy, brown hair. He wanted to see her again. Talk to her. Get her number. And finally figure out her name.

Today he spent the afternoon in the park with his soccer ball. He ran drills with himself trying to distract his mind.

The kiss in the rain from the stranger Philby had felt on his lips for days. It lingered there and intruded into his mind when he least expected it. He didn't know what it meant. Philby was a brainiac student with not much experience with girls. Sure, he had kissed a girl before, but not like this. Never did it have this effect on him.

And she was smart too. They thought the same ways incredible for the young man to think. She kept up with his conversation and seemed to know what he was going to say before he did. She was quick. The beautiful girl had stolen his heart and his mind all over the course of one conversation.

All Philby wanted was to see her again. He didn't know why, which was a first for him. He didn't know what he would do. He just knew he had to.

Finn was lying on his back on top of his mattress reading a comic book, when Philby came in. Maybeck was sitting in front of the only space mirrored closet door, that wasn't covered by poster, practicing the face he called 'make the girls fall to their knees'.

"What up, Philbo?" asked Maybeck, not looking up at his friend.

Philby shrugged.

"I already know what your answer is going to be, but I'm going to ask anyway," said Finn. "Are you coming to the movie tonight with us?"

The young man thought for a moment. _A campus movie night? There will be people from all over school. Will the mystery girl be there?_ Philby decided that the chance was one to take and not to regret.

"Sure, why not?"

The two boys stopped what they were doing to stare in shock at their roommate. It was the first time in almost eight months that Philby had decided to go out on a Friday night with them.

"Who are you, and what have you done with our roommate?"

* * *

"Here," Charlene threw a small, gold and green object at Willa. Luckily the girl had the hand-eye coördination to catch it.

"Lipstick? Really?" asked Willa seeing what the small tube she caught was. "Is this-"

"Necessary? Yes, it is completely essential," the expert told her. "The last time you saw this guy was when you kissed him. Which, I am sorry to say this, is very out of character for you Willa. But I do not have any doubt in my mind that if he made this big of an impression on you that you did on him as well. The poor guy probably hasn't been able to stop thinking about you."

Willa smiled at the thought as she leaned her face in close to the mirror and applied the deep red color to her lips. After she let it slip that she e had met a guy, Willa had to provide the rest of the story to the three girls. She would not give them a description of what he looked like, afraid they would go searching on their own.

The girls reacted with excitement at the story and decided that Willa had no choice but to attend movie night tonight, even if it was only to scour the crowd for a familiar face.

Not excited about giving up her secret, Willa prepared herself for the evening's festivities. She pulled her hair into a low clip at the base of her neck, wore black skinny jeans and a beige leather jacket. With the application of Charlene's lipstick and putting on her black flats, Willa was ready to go. Her and Charlene grabbed the old quilt out of the closet and went to meet Amanda and Jess out in the hall. With the girls ready to go they headed over to the large hill a few streets over from the dorm buildings.

Stepping of the side-walk and into the grass the four girls made their way over to the middle of the hill. Already half-way there, Willa could see Finn and his roommate Maybeck setting out a spot with their lawn chairs. Willa knew Maybeck from when they worked in the theatre department on campus. As they closed in on the boys, Amanda stepped behind Finn and reached up to cover his eyes with her hands.

"Guess who?" she whispered into his ear.

"Hmm, I don't know," he joked. "Maybe it's my beautiful girlfriend?"

"Good guess," Amanda stretched up on her toes to kiss her boyfriends cheek.

"Ewww!" the group groaned. But the two continued to smile at each other.

The group set down their blankets and took their seats. It was ten minutes to show time. Willa decided she would use the restroom before she the movie started. She got up and headed into the nearest building which happened to be a small cafeteria in the main hall.

"I wonder where Philby is." Finn said out loud to Maybeck. It was Amanda who answered from her seat snuggled up next to her boyfriend.

"Your roommate?"

"Yeah, he actually decided to come out of the library tonight. Decided he wanted to go grab something to drink a few minutes before you showed up. He has been acting strange lately."

* * *

_This line is taking forever_, Philby thought.

He had left to get a drink and got stuck in line with everyone else who had the same plan. Philby gave up on standing in line and walked over to the nearby vending machines to get a water bottle. As he reached down to grab his drink out of the bottom compartment, he saw a reflection in the Plexiglas. He could have sworn it was her walking behind him. Her silhouette matched the image of her in his mind. Philby turned around and saw the swish of brown hair. Her brown hair. It was the girl he hadn't been able to stop thinking about for three weeks. His heartbeat picked up, along with his step.

Overcome with whatever it was he was feeling, Philby walked up next to his mystery girl.

"Are you following me?" he repeated the line that had become sort of their catch phrase. Instantly she recognized him by either the line or the accent. She stopped to look at him.

Her brown eyes blazed with recognition. But no words were spoken. Slowly the dark-haired girl backed away from him. Unsure of what was happening, Philby tried to reach out and grab her arm. She shrank away from his touch and hurriedly walked out of the food court. Through the masses of students Philby tried to follow her but she was small and fast. He couldn't keep up. Philby was positive this was the girl who had been on his mind. But she was already gone before he could tell her that. She left like she had that night in the rain.


	4. Stumble

Willa ran hard. As fast as she could. She had to get out of there. She just had to get away from him. Though she didn't know why, it was instinctual. Run from danger. Run from trouble. But it was odd. She had wanted to see him. Her heart told her that it was fate that they met. It had to mean something to more than just her. But her mind disagreed. That seemed to be happening to Willa a lot lately. She thought it would only cause her pain. The idea of finding someone who might actually be interested in her was to be laughed at. Her other relationship proved that to her.

Her pace dawdled. Willa swerved her step off the sidewalk path to rest against a tall, fat, shady tree. As she caught her breath she took in her surroundings. The girl couldn't be sure where she was. The dark night and shade from the tree obscured most of the light. Retracing her steps in her mind she located herself on the east side of campus, off course from a walking trail.

Willa's breathing steadied. The silence was calming. Well, the almost silence was calming. She heard the sway of the leaves in the trees that surrounded her and the cicadas clicking. The girl listened closer. A steady _swoosh_ echoed almost silently. She knew that sound. After all Willa grew up in Florida. Those summer days she practically lived on the beach. It was the sound of waves crashing.

Slowly, she stepped forward, into the brush.

* * *

Philby sulked his way back to the group of friends.

He wanted to go back to his dorm room and mope about ruining his shot with the girl but decided he had a commitment to his friends first. She had run out on him and there was nothing the red-haired but could do now. He would wait and eventually find her again. Maybe he could talk to her and apologize for his brashness. Or maybe she would find him. Or maybe, and the odds seemed to be pointing in this direction, it was absolutely nothing. Philby didn't usually believe in destiny or any of that mumbo-jumbo but something was stopping him from forgetting.

Philby walked over to where he saw his roommates sitting on a blanket. Their group seemed to have expanded.

A girl with brown hair lounged across Finn's legs in a comfortable ease.

_Amanda_, Philby thought. Nether were paying any attention to the movie that already started.

Maybeck, Philby's other roommate was lounging in the same spot that the British boy left him. Two girls flanked either side. One, he recognized as Amanda's sister Jess. Sometimes Philby doubted that they were actually related. They had no resemblance to each other once or ever. But the onetime he questioned them on the subject, the very first time he met them, they shut him up with a glare and a terse "yes, we are sisters." Finn told him later that it was a sore spot for the two and even he did not know the whole story. The other one Philby hadn't seen around before. She had lush blonde hair that was curled and pulled away from her face. Blue eyes shone bright like crystals when she turned to look at him.

Philby squatted to the ground on the soft, blue quilt.

"Hey!" Finn called out. Amanda squirmed around; adjusting herself in Finns entwined arms, to get a better view of the newcomer. "Look who came back! I thought you were grabbing a drink?"

Philby looked down at his empty hand. "Yea, well, let's just say the vending machine and I had a disagreement."

"That's too bad." The couple laughed at the boy. As sad as he was he tried to put on a happy face. A small smile touched his lips but disappeared before it formed. "Philby this is Charlene," he introduced. "Charlene, Philby."

"Pleasure," Philby held out his hand.

"That vending machine must have torn out your heart and ate it," said Charlene. "Is something wrong?"

Philby shrugged, he tried to shake of the feelings of remorse for letting his emotions show through so much. But the girl, Charlene wasn't off with her accusation. Even Jess had narrowed her eyes at him.

A few minutes passed at a snail's pace as Terry recalled some story of a vending machine eating his dollar and how he got his arm stuck through the bottom trying to get a candy bar out. Charlene laughed hysterically at every twist in the story.

"Have any of you guys heard from Willa?" Jess interrupted clearly bored with the tale.

Amanda looked at her watch. "Oh, gosh, it's been that long? She should be back by now." The girl reached in her back pocket for her phone and began to dial.

"Let her be," Charlene chided. Not happy for the change in conversation. "Willa is a big girl. She can take care of herself. Who knows, maybe she found that mystery guy," the blonde giggled.

Philby's brain went into focus at the words. _A mystery guy_? Was it possible? He was looking for his mystery girl, was she looking for him? He remembered back a half hour. He had just seen her but she ran. She ran away. If the girl was Willa that would explain why she wasn't back. Willa. It was an unusual name but a beautiful now. He could see the girl in his head. Hear face, her eyes, her ears, her hair, and her lips. Willa.

"Charlene!" Amanda gasped.

"What?" the girl said in mock fright. "Was I not supposed to say anything?"

"Haven't you heard of privacy?" Amanda looked appalled. "She told you about him in confidence."

Maybeck, who sat up a little straighter, asked, "Angelo's got herself a little boyfriend now, huh? Who is he?"

"No," said Charlene, "she doesn't. She doesn't even know his name," she scoffed. "They meet in a coffee shop."

"What's so wrong with that?" Philby snipped. He was sure now. Someone must have been looking down messing with him. This was all too coincidental. If this was the girl, how long could they have run around in the same circles?

Charlene took taken back by his sudden outburst. "No nothing's wrong with meeting a person. And she seems like she really likes him. But she didn't get his number or anything! For as smart as Willa is," she said, "she makes some dumb mistakes when it comes to boys. Like who kisses someone they barely know and then walks away without a phone number or a name or another date or . . ."

"That's enough Charlie," Finn stopped her.

The group was silent for a moment. The pieces of the puzzle were coming together for Philby. Every bit of the story was fitting into place. A feeling excitement was bubbling in his chest. It was similar to the feelings he got when he was discovering new software on the computer. A feeling of discover. It was his Candyland. He glanced over at Charlene. At first he was angry at her for taking down Willa. But he couldn't help but want to hug her for giving him his big break.

Breaking the silence, "I'm going to get a drink," Jess said. "Philby you want to come with? We can wrestle with that vending machine." She stood up and walked behind Amanda and Finn. Grabbing Philby by the arm she dragged him off before he could answer.

"I have a confession to make," Philby stuttered out when they were out of earshot from the group. "The vending machine isn't really broken."

Jess stopped walking to look at the sad-faced boy. She tilted her head to the side. "Why would I go to a vending machine if I knew it was broke?"

Philby sensed that she knew more than she should. His thoughts raced back and forth in his head. Should he tell her or not? She is friends with

Willa, she could confirm his suspicions, even possibly talk to her.

"Do you have any other confessions to make?"

Oh, she was good.

"No." Philby scolded himself mentally.

"What about . . . you being Willa's mystery guy? Got anything to say about that? "

"How'd you know?"

Jess smiled, she knew her victory. "I guessed." She was slightly taller than Philby she looked down at him.

"I don't even know if it's her. I mean the stories are the same but like you heard I don't have a name or a number or anything."

Jess pulled out her phone. She found a picture that Charlene took of herself in the mirror getting ready. And tweeted it to her followers. In the back you can see a small brunette girl walking by unaware of the camera.

"Is this her?" Jess asked.

Philby reached out for the phone. "Yes," he whispered. He was astonished at how small the world was.

"You saw her inside didn't you?"

"Yea and she ran off. Didn't want to see me."

Jess sighed. They began walking gain. "Willa has a convoluted love life," she said. "When she was talking about you earlier, she really likes you. But her past scares her. She was hurt bad and doesn't want it to ever happen again. I suspect that's why she ran. Part of her is terrified from actually having a relationship."

"What happened?"

The tall girl smiled. "You'll have to ask her about it sometime."

"But, Jess, I probably won't ever see her."

Jess hit him on the back of the head. "What do you think I am here for?!" she laughed. "Just don't tell any of the other's about you two. Got it?"

"I swear I won't."

"Good. Now here is the plan . . ."


	5. Implementation

New chapter for you guys. ALERT: Cuteness and awkwardness ahead!

Enjoy!

* * *

The most devious thing Philby had ever done that he could remember was staying up until three in the morning to play video games while his parents thought he was asleep. This was much different from that.

Philby and Jess were in contact with each other all Saturday. She masterminded their movements as well as anyone could. All Philby could do was hope it would work.

* * *

Willa checked the skies outside her dorm window early that Sunday evening. _Clear blue_.

After running two nights ago and finding a hideout she snuck away again twice. It was a quiet place she had started calling her Cove. Even though that's not what it was. It was a cliff really. A hidden cliff about a quarter of a mile off the actual beach and twenty feet above the waves. A wide, old tree offered her shade and privacy. Saturday night after her friends had gone out Willa had brought a blanket up to sit on and her book though she found herself looking out at the sunset more. The seclusion offered her the peace and quiet to think. Of course, there was only one thing she could think of. _Him._

She had run from him. The charming red-head. He had only said hello and she ran for it.

Willa now sat on the edge of her bed scouring the messy dorm room for the last place she left her book. She couldn't remember where she had put it when she returned to her room the previous night and crashed on the bed.

In the middle of her search on knock came to the opened door. She looked up to see the shy smiling face of Jess. Willa and Jess had never been the closest of friends. They got together occasionally for studying or to go to the gym but never talked or pried into the others life. They were friends in which they had each other's backs and sometimes that was the best kind of person to have around.

"Hey, Jess! Come in. What can I do for you?" Willa asked with an inviting beam.

"Oh, nothing really," Jess stepped through the doorway, she tried to look innocent but it was hard to do when she was oh so obviously holding something behind her back. Willa raised an eyebrow. "My room was a little crowded. Amanda invited Finn over."

"Makes sense now."

"Anyway," Jess brought the object out from behind her back. It was a sketchbook of large proportions. "I really need to get some of these sketches done for art class in the morning. I cannot stay in that room," her head nodded down the hall to her own room, "while they are . . . umm. . . distracting. The art studio is closed as well."

"Jess," Willa said, "you know you are welcome to work in here."

"Actually," Jess eyes set on Willa, "I was thinking of going over to Tremaine Square. You wanna come with me?"

Tremaine Square was exactly as it sounded. A square. A one story box with no windows like being locked in a tower. The cafeteria style table arrangement gave it a school study hall atmosphere. Computer and bookshelves lined the walls. It wasn't the most well used out of the libraries on campus. It wasn't well stocked. It was old-fashioned and out dated. Willa was internally debating with herself. Would she run to her haven or actually do some of the homework that had been pushed to the side with her preoccupation.

"You see," the girl started.

"I would really appreciate it," Jess pleaded. "It's so awkward going to these places by myself."

Willa stood up from the edge of her bed. She was aggravated with herself for misplacing her book and not finding it sooner. Jess' face lit up with joy.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," she jumped up and down. In a split second Willa realized that the girl had taken her action as yes. "Okay," she motioned with her hands, "grab your things and meet me downstairs in five minutes."

Willa gaped as the girl left the room. She cursed inwardly at her quiet voice. Willa found her pink cardigan and threw it on over her tee-shirt and jean shorts ensemble. She flung her messenger bag over her shoulder with her English papers inside figuring she may as well get some work done if she was being roped into this

_This better be good_, she thought and ran out the door.

* * *

Philby couldn't tell if it was the lack of air-conditioning in old Tremaine Square or his nerves but sweat seemed to lacquer his forehead and palms. Philby was sitting in one of the two dozen tables inside the building. Located near the center of the room the rectangular table held ten people: five on each side.

_This is ridiculous_. He thought. _This is never going to work_.

Then he saw the two of them walk in together. Hs first sight was Jess. She locked eyes with him across the room and winked. The plan was in motion. Jess turned her head to the side a nodded in his direction. She shifted out-of-the-way and Philby saw her.

Her brown hair cascaded down on her shoulders as her eyes looked around for where to sit. He saw her eyes combing over the crowd of people. Philby shifted his gaze down to his computer. He already saw Jess routing her way over. It was now or never. The plan would go through or fall through the cracks. She would stay and maybe Philby could say what he has waited what seems like his whole life to say or maybe she would run again.

"Here," Philby heard. It was Jess's voice. "This looks like a good spot." He felt the table shift slightly as the two sat down. "Excuse me." Philby looked up from behind his computer. Jess could sense his nervousness he guessed and was making sure he spoke at least two words. Her eyes bore into him. "These spots aren't taken are they?"

"No," he shook his head. "You are perfectly fine sitting here."

Jess turned to her bag, angrily pulling out her notebook. Willa, who had tensed up at the sight of him, was slowly taking out her supplies as if contemplating running out of the fire escape. Philby eyed her secretly through the side of his vision. She was looking down at her paper shyly while chewing on a pen cap.

"Shoot!" Jess hands banged down on the table. "I forgot my brainstorms." She looked across the table at Willa. "I have to run and grab them." Refilling her bag with the sketch book she took out she stood up from the table. "I will be back in ten minutes."

Willa looked after her friends retreating body incredulously then to Philby with the same look of amazement. The boy glanced up from his work trying to look innocent. He held a hand up to the girl. Neither were sure if it was a greeting wave or trying to keep peace.  
"Hello," he said politely.

"What are you _doing_ here?" she whispered harshly.

"Studying," he lied.

Willa looked around the room hastily. Sighing she grabbed her things and moved down the table to sit across from the boy. "This is crazy that we keep meeting like this. Are you following me or something? Let's settle it now. Am I going to need to get a restraining order?"s she asked with a serious look on her face. The brown eyes that Philby had remembered stared at him.

"You know most people start by exchanging phone numbers not legal papers." Philby held her gaze. Under normal circumstances the he would have blushed and looked down but these weren't normal circumstances. To his surprise she was the one who turned away with a pink color rising in her neck.

Philby watched her in admiration, the surreal happening of her in front of him. He prayed he wouldn't blow it.

"Unlike you," she stated. "I am actually going to try to get some work done right now. So if you don't mind." Willa looked down at her notebook rather pleased with herself.

A crease formed between Philby's eyebrows. Moat girls, he contemplated, would have flirted back. Maybe he wasn't as good at being a ladies' man as he originally thought but still. She had moved over by him a soon as her friend left but not to talk to him. He watched her quizzically. Philby saw the way her eyes shifted as she worked. The gears on her mind visibly turning. Whatever she was focusing on to avoid him she was engaged in laboriously.

"What about your friend?" Philby pretended to study his own paper. He hoped he was a good actor because the work held no significance to him. Not with the beautiful girl so near.

"Oh please," Willa scoffed, "she's not coming back."

"What makes you so sure?" the questions were pouring out of his mouth before his mind was able to process why he was concerned.

"She took all her stuff," Willa said surely. "Earlier, she sounded like she wanted to spend as little time as possible in her room. So why would she forget something she needed?"

"Maybe it was an accident."

"Clue two: if it was an accident it wouldn't make her want to stay there so she would come back right?"

"Right."

"Wrong," Willa instant responded. "She took all of her stuff." The girl raised her eyes. "She's not coming back."

The two looked each other over the stack of documents.

"Can I ask you something?" He didn't wait for her answer. "Why'd – Why did you run the other day when you saw me?"

Willa was quiet for a moment. She took a shaky breathe. "Honestly, I have _no_ idea. I've been asking myself the same question."

Philby didn't know how to respond to that. He hid his confusion by taking sudden interest in his computer screen that had been sitting off to the side.

"What did you think after that first night we met? The night in the coffee shop? Tell me you don't think about it as often as I do." His voice was relatively calm like he was restraining himself. He wasn't looking at her nor was Willa looking at him.

"Confused." She nodded. "I was happy and that was confusing." The girl paused and bit her lip nervously. "I, uh, have a hard time trusting people. It takes a while to open up. With you though I thought we could have talked for hours and hours more. It was definitely . . . perplexing." A nervous laugh came through her lips. It was short. Too short for Philby to memorize but he thought that he might just be the best sound he ever heard. He wished he could hear it again and again. "Then, you walked me to my dorm and I something just, I don't know it came over me some force and I kissed you before I could stop myself. And that is NOT what I do. I don't kiss people I don't know. This whole thing is ridiculous and I don't understand it. But I do. I said that what I did wasn't like me but sometimes I want to be that girl. But I'm scared to." Willa caught his eye finally. They stared puzzled. "I have thought about you every day since we met."

A smile formed in both of their faces. Admitting the truth comforted them. The invisible weight on their shoulders lifted.

"Hi," the boy held out his hand across the table, "I'm Philby. It's nice to meet you."

Willa rolled her eyes. "What are you doing?" she laughed.

"We never properly introduced ourselves."

"I guess we haven't . . ." she outstretched her hand. "Willa."

Philby gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "It's a pleasure to meet you Willa. I feel like I have known you forever."

Willa giggled and nervously bit her lip. The boy wasn't used to making girls laugh but he make the corniest jokes for the rest of his life if he could hear hers.

They released hands. Willa's fingers found the hem of her shirt and fiddled to straighten herself out.

"So, where does this leave us?" Willa inquired.

Philby had to admit he was nervous about this part. He thought of seeing Willa, and talking to her. But he too didn't know what this would mean. Under the table, the red-head crossed his fingers. He practiced this part in the mirror more times than he wanted to admit.

"It leaves us," he began, "as friend in a dusty old library. Studying, of course. One of them is using the question as a corny excuse to ask out the other Wednesday night. And now he is wondering what she will say?"

Willa flushed. "The other one is saying yes."


	6. Curiosity

This chapter was way too much fun to write. I had way too many ideas for their first date and had to edit down a large chunk but I hope you like it anyways. One thing I want to say is, if you couldn't tell, I am kind of a Disney freak and I like to hide different Easter eggs on the chapters relating to Disney. If you can catch them you are awesome. There is one in almost every chapter. sometimes two. only a few of you have mentioned anything so maybe I am not as good as I thought. But happy hunting to those looking!

Please review!

Enjoy!

* * *

For Willa, Wednesday was a day of dread.

Sunday night was the first night she got a full night of sleep in a long time. No questions scrambling her mind. Just peace. Monday and Tuesday passed in the same blissful state. But Wednesday morning she woke up in a panic it hadn't occurred to her that she knew of nothing that was headed her way for the night. How was she supposed to prepare?

Willa recalled the last time she spoke to Philby. She remembered the embarrassed smile that played on his mouth when he asked her out and the way he beamed when she said yes. At the time Willa had thought his smile was the most adorable thing in the world. One side of his mouth went up before the other and his golden brown eyes grew with excitement.

Some part of Willa couldn't believe herself after she said it. She said yes! After running away. After all her confusion. Like most things that seemed to happen to her lately she hadn't thought. It spilled out of her. But she didn't regret it.

After their short conversation, Willa knew it would be impossible to work any longer with the boy sitting across the table. She told him she needed to head back up to her room for the night. She hadn't expected him to want to walk her again. Part of her heart skipped a beat as they walked the cracked sidewalk to Bell Hall. Like before he stopped at the heavy glass front door.

"So . . ." Willa stared. She pivoted to the side to look the boy in the eye. "I guess I will see you Wednesday?"

His eyes lit up as if he forgot she had agreed to see him again. "Yes! I will see you then."

Not sure what do, Willa opened the door and let herself in. Philby waved to her and she responded with the same goodbye gesture. Willa made it halfway up the stair case, she turned slightly as she did the last he dropped her off at her dorm. That time she ran back down, this time she looked and he was walking with his hands in his pockets, his laptop case banging against his side.

Will a grinned. The scene was familiar in so many ways that she found butterflies of happiness in her stomach.

Now she was standing in the middle of her room three days later in sweatpants and a tank top. Clothes strewn all over her bed. Her Minnie Mouse alarm clock read five twelve. She didn't know where she was going or when she was going to meet Philby and to say it simply she was terrified.

It was her first date in six months. The first time she had ever thought of another guy this much since Spencer. She hadn't spoken to anyone about what had happened except Amanda. And Amanda didn't know of her date tonight. No one did. And Willa hoped to keep it that way for as long as possible.

She should have known it wouldn't last long.

The rattling of the doorknob frightened her out of her reverie. Her heart jumped when she saw it was just Charlene.

"Hey!" Willa said breathlessly. "You scared me."

Charlene's face was scrunched up in a peculiar way. She was studying a packet of papers in her hand.

"What's wrong?" Willa questioned.

Charlene looked up. "Here," she handed the papers over. "I found these on the door clip. I have no idea what they are."

The blonde pursed her lips and shuffled to her bed. Setting down her bag and opening her computer.

Willa looked at the stack of papers puzzled. She recognized it but couldn't remember where from. Charlene was obviously stumped, so they weren't meant for her. Willa flipped through the pages. There were online articles, graphs, and diagrams all about computers and hackers. on the last leaf she noticed something irregular. Someone had written in words at the bottom of the page upside down I a red marker.

Willa flipped the page over and read:

WHAT S LOVE?

IT IS THE MORNING AND THE EVENING STAR.

DO YOU REMEMBER WHERE WE FIRST MET? 6:30 – PHILBY

Willa turned around to hide her excitement from Charlene.

"No," she told her. "I don't know what they are either. I will take them to the dorm office and ask them later."

The girl stashed the pages in her leather messenger bag knowing she had absolutely no reason to take them down there. She remembered now. That first night, in the coffee shop he complained about his research then showed her it. This was it. Or of it part. Five pages full over empty words, meaningless to practically everyone. Everyone but Willa. She wanted to hold them to her heart and fall backwards, laughing with giddiness. And she had no idea why?

_Calm yourself_, she said in her head. _You have no idea who this kid is. You just met him. Stop acting like a teenage fangirl with a silly celebrity crush. Be rational. You are just going out with him tonight. It may not even work out._

"I am going to head to the gym and then maybe grab something to eat. You wanna come?" it was Charlene's voice. Willa turned to see that the girl had changes into a pair of sweat pants and an old blue tee-shirt that read something witty about cheerleading.

"Oh, no, I can't." Willa responded too quickly. "Not tonight."

Charlene's eyes narrowed in suspicion. She must have thought it was nothing because she didn't ask. Willa watched her go into her closet and grab the small duffel bag filled with the girls gym stuff. They waved goodbye and Charlene left.

Willa sighed, heavy relief flew off her shoulders.

One her silly worries was out-of-the-way.

* * *

Before Philby snuck out of his dorm at six he had enough sense to put on his nicest pair of jeans and a midnight blue button down shirt.

With his hands in his pockets he made his way through the various campus streets past lecture halls big and small and bustling dorm rooms. Besides the scattered students running from building to building he was the only one out there. Soon enough, the street opened up into a large rectangular court-yard. During the day the square would be packed with students passing time at the covered picnic tables, biking or walking along the sidewalks. But at night it was silent. At least this night. Wednesday. No one went out on Wednesday.

_It's a shame_, Philby thought. and he was right. It was a shame no one went out into the campus at night when they would be all alone. It was truly pretty when not filled to the masses.

Cobble stones layered the ground, cracks filled with mossy grass. Each of the empty picnic tables spiraled around a center fountain in a circular pattern. From the top of each colorful umbrella was a strand of twinkling Christmas lights that connected the vacant concrete slabs.

Philby meandered through the unfilled lot until he found the spot he was looking for. The table with the yellow umbrella closest to the upscale indoor gym and directly across from the coffee lounge with the pink neon light. He sat with his back leaning against the solid table his arms bent on either side of him.

The red-head checked his watch; six twenty-two. He was early.

Ignoring the butterflies of nervousness in his stomach Dell Philby fiddled with his fingers and hummed.

"I thought I might find you here," her voice was smooth and melodic and scared him.

Philby jumped up out of his seat, pivoting towards the voice and successfully hitting his head on the umbrella pole above him. The girl gasped.

Embarrassed, he closed his eyes and rubbed his bumped scalp taking the necessary measures to duck and stepped out-of-the-way of the covering. When he opened his eyelids she was in front of him.

Directly in front of him.

She was either closer than he thought to begin with or had come forward during his episode. Philby's newly recovered eyes met her worried brown ones. Willa. It was her. Really her. And she was concerned. He felt her hand touch his bicep gently. It took him a moment to realize she was speaking.

"What?" he shook his head trying to think straight.

She laughed slightly but her apprehensive face didn't soften much.

"I said, are you alright? I didn't mean to scare you like that."

"No, no," he was struggling to gain his composure back."You didn't scare me."

She raised an eyebrow. "uh-huh. Right." She seemed to believe him though. She took her hand off his arm and wound them around herself. Philby's gaze took her in.

"I didn't think you would come," he told her honestly.

Willa pointed over her shoulder and half turned. "Should I leave?" she joked.

"No!i didn't know if you would get the note. I mean not that you wouldn't get it. I put it on your door. I wasn't sure if you would understand. Not that you are not smart! Exceedingly smart! I mean," Philby stammered. "I'm glad you're here. You look great."

Her red dress was fitted down to her waist that flared out with pleats that broke up the white horizontal stripes that gradually got bigger then stopped at the hem just above her knees. The red tone of the dress brought out the pink of her cheeks as she blushed. A loose jean jacket hung over her arms and a brown leather purse was resting at her hip. Great wasn't the only word Philby would use to describe her. Tons of words popped into his head but he was too tongue-tied to speak them clearly.

"Did I do okay?" her arms left her waist and raised to her shoulders, palm up, in a shrug.

This question confused Philby. "What do you mean?" his eyebrows creased.

"I wasn't exactly sure what kind if _outing_ this was tonight?" she admitted.

Her emphasis on the word bothered Philby. If he was being honest, the whole question bothered him. He wasn't sure of the answer yet himself. "It is whatever we want it to be."

It was one of those answers that seemed like it came out of a movie, to Willa. But she wouldn't let him stop there.

"We should get going," Philby said. "You're not going to want to miss this." He directed her in the direction to head, and then gently placed his hand on her lower back guiding Willa out of the maze of tables onto a sidewalk.

They walked for a while making small conversation about their days. Willa begged to know where they were headed to but Philby told her it was a surprise and he didn't want to ruin it for her. Willa apprehensively wrung her fingers together.

"You seem on edge," Philby teased. "I promise I'm not going to kill you in the woods or anything." His ability to joke with her shocked him. The ease at which she brought out this side of him was extraordinary. Unlike anything Dell Philby had experienced before.

Willa rolled her eyes. "It's just . . . something you said before, about what we want this to be. I was just wondering what you thought it was." The girl turned her head slightly. Her brown eyes took him in. red hair barely brushed or styled on top of his head. Willa was an averaged sized girl height wise and he was at least six inches taller than she was. He didn't see her looking at him. Philby kept on walking with his hands in his pocket and a curious look on his face.

"A beginning, I hope," he told her truthfully. Their eyes met for a fraction of a second, then turned quickly to focus on the cracked path they were making their way on. "I don't know if you felt what I did when we met but. . . I have never, and I mean never, met anyone like you, Willa."

"Is that good?"

"That's great!" Philby nearly shouted. "All I know is I can't stop thinking about you. I want to know more about you, hang out with you. It's new and daunting but . . . this has never happened to me before." Willa's face was unreadable. Dell stepped in front of her, stopping their decent. "Tell me," he spoke softly. "What are you thinking?'

When he moved in front of her, Willa had been caught off-guard. In turn, the two were now standing face to face, mere inches apart.

"I think," Willa breathed, "I should trip and nearly fall on my face only to be save by sweet, handsome guys more often." Her mouth twisted into a sly smile.

"I'll stay nearby," he joked, but it wasn't a joke really. It was a new motto to live by. "So, am I crazy or what?"

"If you're crazy then I am crazy too."

Willa could feel their close proximity about to change. Every second her memory of running down the stairs, kissing him in surprise felt hazy. The urge to feel that sensation again was almost unbearable. Before doing anything rash, she said, "didn't you say we needed to get going?"

His eyes darted around her face, memorizing each feature. "Yeah." He turned away. "It's right up here."

The two rounded the corner falling out of the shadows if the classrooms. Willa immediately recognized the area. They were at the Pier. A sunset on the ocean, boats floating in the water and a light house in the background made a picturesque scene.

"Were going on a boat?"

"You don't get seasick do you?"

"No, no," she told him. "This is amazing!"

They made their way forward onto wood planking. Philby offered her his hand down the stairs. Willa, in awe of him, took it gladly.

"I didn't take you for a boat guy."

"You don't know me yet," he told her. "I am a man of many interests. This just happens to be one of the habits I have gained over the past few months."

Willa had to admit she liked that he said _yet._

"I have to warn you though," Philby added. "We won't be alone."

Willa glanced at him curiously.

"The astronomy majors," he cleared, "go out every so often on the boat. Observing and mapping and all that other stuff they do. I fix their electronic gear for them sometimes. So as a salary, I am allowed to come out with them. As long as, I stay out-of-the-way."

"This explains the line about stars." She laughed. Willa, walking ahead of him, saw about ng seven people up ahead on the narrow pier, loading equipment onto a substantial boat. "So," she turned around walking backwards. Her hand was still holding onto his as if it was second nature. "Is this how you impress all the girls? Poetry and stargazing?"

"I have never taken anyone here before." Willa stopped in her tracks and stared. "You tell me, are you impressed?"

"Exceedingly." Philby impressed her more and more by the minute. She jumped up on her toes, a smile spread widely across her face, she pulled on his hand and took off running. "Let's go!"

A boy greeted them as the couple climbed aboard the vessel. He was big-boned with a lazy smile and tired eyes. The dark hair lay untidy in his pudgy face.

"Glad you could finally join us Dell," he chortled.

"Nice to see you Hugo," Philby greeted at the same time Hugo finished, "I see you brought a friend."

Philby tugged lightly on Willa's hand in attempt to guide her to the bow where they would hide away for the night, but she let go. The hand that only a few seconds ago held his was in front of her greeting Hugo.

"Hi! I'm Willa." Hugo shook her hand. "I'm a friend of Philby's. Thank you for letting us join you guys."

"Oh," Hugo's face lit up with something mischievous glinting in his eyes. "So, you are a _friend_ of Philby's?" The red-head grimaced at him. "Because I am a _friend_ of Philby's. I have been since the seventh grade. And I think this is the first time I have ever seen him take a girl out. You know, _friend_ like things."

"O-kay," Philby intruded, "Ha, Ha, thank you Hue. Don't you have some specks to look at? C'mon Willa," he let his hand slide to her back again.

Willa bit her lip to hide her laughter, his frustration with his friend was cute.

"Don't be angry at him," Willa chided. They sat at two small lounge back seats. Willa felt the rumble of the engine starting vibrate under her legs.

"I'm not angry," he replied, stony faced. Obviously, it was a lie. Willa nudged him with her elbow and raised her eyebrows. With a devilish smile on her lips he told the truth. "I'v known Hugo since the sixth grade. He can be . . . frustrating, to say the least."

"He called you Dell?" Willa asked. Interest bubbled inside her.

Philby looked down, trying not to smile. "That's my real name. Dell Philby," he admitted. "It's an old English name. Passed down through the generations, I am the lucky one who got it after my grandfather."

"I like it. You should use it more often. It's got character."

"Ha!" Philby scoffed. "Thanks."

"I'm serious." And she was. He could tell from the look on her face as she stared off into the ocean. The boat had just left the harbor. Willa didn't look at all afraid.

"What about you?" Dell asked, turning the tables on her. "Willa. That's not an ordinary name there has to be some story behind it."

"Truth is," she turned to away from the water. Philby relished in the way the wind blew out her wavy hair behind her. "That's not my real name." The boy raised his eyebrows. "Isabella Angelo is my real name. Willa is just a nickname."

"Now I'm sure there is a story behind that."

"No, not really. My Nana's name was Willa she died right before I was born. Family rumor is I am a lot like her. All I know is I was called Little Willa long enough growing up with my family, that when I was six I demanded they drop the Little. Now I'm just Willa," she shrugged.

Philby couldn't help but smile when she spoke, "How big is your family, Willa?"

"Huge." She blurted. "Why?"

"I'm just curious. I am an only child. All of my extended family is overseas."

Willa gave in. "I am the second youngest five, and unfortunately the only girl."

"Oh, wow!"

"Yeah. I defiantly had a loud childhood." They laughed. "Ian, Isaac and Isaiah, the twins, and Indy. Then there's me."

"That must have been fun. What about your parents?"

"They're . . . parents. Why all the questions about my family?"

Philby shrugged. "I told you. I'm curious."

"So am I!"

"No, I'm perpetually boring."

The couples conversation went back and forth all night like that, asking each other inquisitive questions, under the blanket of darkness and stars, each wanting to know the other better. They talked about high school, what they want to do in the future, their families, cats or dogs, everything, and discovered they had more in common than originally thought. Before they realized it they were back at the pier and the class was herding them off.

"One more question," Willa demanded as they rounded the corner to h. r dorm building. She could feel her time with him dwindling away for the night. "I had fun tonight. Did you?"

"Miss. Angelo, if I didn't I would have been out of here a long time ago." Willa "My turn," they had reached the front of her building now. "When do we get to do this again?"

"Hmm," Willa thought, "Hand me your phone."

Without question Philby reached in his pocket and handed over his cell phone.

"What are you doing?" he asked. She hushed him and tapped the screen profusely eventually Willa handed it back over.

"There." She said it like a grand announcement. "You will find every Friday has been filled for the rest of the year."

Philby laughed, "just your number would've done."

"Don't worry, that's in there too." Willa bit her lip, Philby found it endearing.

"Okay, one more question," he promised. Willa nodded. "Can I give you a kiss goodnight?"

"Well," she exaggerated, "I don't usually kiss a boy on the first date."

Philby, apparently taking that as a yes leaned forward and gave her a sweet kiss on the cheek. Willa closed her eyes.

"Now your record isn't broken," Philby whispered. "Good night, Willa."

And he walked away.


	7. Cliché

I think the true Wilby lovers will absolutely adore this chapter. WARNING: very fluffy.

Enjoy!

* * *

Willa was sitting in her psychology class on Thursday not paying attention to lecture in the slightest. She was thinking about her night before. The girl couldn't help but smile at the thought. It wasn't just the night, it was _Philby_. Whenever she was reminded of him or thought of him something infectious came over her. She smiled and looked down trying to keep herself from turning giddy. It was the first time in a long time that she had thought about anyone this way. So much adoration, she wondered if it would last.

What Willa didn't know was, as she was doodling in her notebook, her friend and neighbor in the lecture hall was staring at her with utmost scrutiny. Amanda had known Willa for a long time. She had seen her happy and seen her sad. But this wave of joy was unprovoked. Something was happening and Amanda was going to get to the bottom of it.

* * *

Young Dell Philby used to pride himself on his ability to multitask. Focus on the task at hand. But today he was finding it rather difficult. As Finn went on about how his video game skills were top-notch last night and how he thought if his partner in crime had been there they would have beaten the level and he couldn't suddenly bail again next week, Philby was nodding along thinking about the girl with the long, dark hair with the pretty voice. Willa. Isabella. Both names, sounded like angels, and echoed through the red-heads mind as they walked to their separate classes.

Part of Dell knew it was great they had another date set for Friday but tomorrow night seemed too far away.

* * *

_- - - 25 HOURS LATER - - - _

"You know that they going to ask if you are coming out with the group tonight?" something in Jess's smile told Willa that the blonde already knew the answer to the question.

"They always do," the girl laughed. "No, I don't think I'm going to go, though," Willa responded. It was just the two of them sitting at a bench for lunch on the grounds. She had a sandwich in her hands, taking bites between the conversation breaks.

"You know," Jess started, "they are going to be very angry if you keep blowing them off."

The Group, that Jess was referring to included herself, her sister, Amanda, Amanda's boyfriend, Finn, one of his roommates and Willa's roommate, Charlene. Willa was always invited but always declined the offers. She felt like a third wheel that had fallen off the path. Not even close to the track. The group met up almost every day to hang out and unwind.

"Probably," was the entire girl said.

Jess took a sip of her cherry soda, looking at her friend quizzically. "They are going to be even angrier when you tell them you have a secret boyfriend."

Willa's body stiffened. "What are you talking about?"

Jess raised an eyebrow. "Don't even try." She waited. "The Brit from the Library. . ."

"He is so-oo not my boyfriend," Willa dismissed the thought.

"But you want him ." It wasn't a question.

"We are just friends. Hanging out. Nothing is happening."

"Yet," Jess mumbled. Willa was put off now. She glared away from her friend.

"How long have you known about it?"

"Before we went to the library." Willa's head snapped in her direction. "I discovered that the two of you met. Philby really wanted to meet you, so I gave you the push you needed. Willa," Jess put her hand on the girls' knee in a comforting gesture. "He fell for you after that first night. He fell hard. Don't back away now. Please."

Willa took a deep breath, "No one else knows?"

"They are completely clueless."

* * *

Philby paced around his room impatiently all afternoon. It wasn't nerves, he discovered. It was excitement. The boy couldn't rid his face of the grin that had been plastered there since Wednesday.

When it was time to leave he headed out to the cinema they were meeting at and stood in front of the building waiting. He was there fifteen minutes before the time agreed upon. But Willa was punctual.

She had to fight to keep the blush off her face as she walked up the sidewalk with Philby standing in front of the theatre. He wore dark jeans and a hooded grey sweatshirt that molded to his chest. Even dressed so casual he looked unbelievably handsome to Willa. The way the lights off the large ShowTime sign made a glowing halo in his hair.

Philby's look contrasted perfectly with Willa's pale, baby blue, skinny jeans, a white tunic and her hair curled limply. The girl thought of how she could never get enough of looking at him.

Philby meant to say something charming, tell her how great she looked, but his tongue was tied.

"Are you just going to stand there all night?" she joked.

"No!" he nearly shouted back, stuttering his words. "No-no, I just lost my words." He face-palmed. "I'm sorry. I am happy you came."

"Me too," Willa responded sweetly. "But I kind of wanted to see the movie." She nodded into the theatre jokingly.

"Alright," Philby laughed. "I will stop dawdling then." He moved to the left two steps and opened the glass front door. "Let's go."

"That movie was terrible!" Willa nearly fell over as she exited the theatre because she was laughing so hard. A grin covered her face. "I mean could it have gotten anymore cliché?"

"That was dreadful!" Philby chimed in. He was nervous about how the date was going to go and despite the utter pathetic-ness of the film he was actually enjoyed himself. '"I'm never letting you pick what we see again."

Despite the insult Willa was uplifted. "I agree!" she exasperated.

The lobby was busy for it was Friday. People were stuffed in the small space in intricate lines for concessions. Philby turned and began to head for the doors to the main street. Willa grabbed his upper arm without thought, as he snaked their bodies through the crowd and pushed them through the doors.

They exited into a mist of air. Rain was drizzling down as they began to walk. Willa unconsciously left her hand hooked through his arm as they strolled.

"Do you mind if I walk you to your dorm?"

Willa shook her head. In her mind, complaining, while they chatted, that their destination was much too close.

Thunder tolled in the distance. Philby felt the urge to pick up the pace, not just to save them from the incoming storm but to get his courage up before he ran out of time again.

He could see the lighted sign and doorway of her Bell Hall just a block away before he felt the raindrops. They shot down from the sky rapidly as if they were trying to push along their date.

Willa startled when she felt the water splash her cheek. Her eyes, lit with surprise and excitement, went to his. They darted from his to the sky to the door just out of reach. While she wasn't looking, Philby's eyes fell to her lips, thunder rung in the air again.

Their clothes were becoming drenched when she said, "Race ya!"

It wasn't a question.

Her hand let go of him and she was off. Sprinting, leaving Philby behind her by two seconds. His laughter was as loud as the thunder.

Needless to say she beat him. She stopped under the green awning and turned around to see his figure only a few moments behind her.

"Funny," Philby huffed as he joined her. "If I didn't know any better, I would say you were trying to get rid of me?" his accent came through even more when out of breath. Willa giggled.

"No," she told him. "I just think it's important you know that I have talent. That should be established early in any relationship. I am the skilled one," she pointed at herself.

"Oh, really?" Philby exaggerated. He liked this playful side of Willa. His heart fluttered when he looked at her. The rain had matted her dark hair to the sides of her face and strung down her back. Her shirt, as well as his, clung close to their bodies, damp. "We will see about that." He moved a strand of hair behind her ear. "You know the very first time I walked you home, it was raining."

"I remember."

"Some would say that is bad luck. That the fates are trying to tell us something."

"Do you believe that?"

"Not one bit," he stated honestly.

The moment was silent at that moment.

Willa looked up into his eyes as Philby took a step closer. She realized just how tall he was then, at least a full head taller. The smiles that had highlighted their lips all night were gone. There was the hushed noise of the roads blocks away, drowned out by the rain, the light of the dorm room staircase just beyond the door, and them. the two o them. Philby who had stepped forward and hesitantly leaned down. Willa inclined her head to match, closing her eyes.

At that moment, they were kissing.

Philby shyly brushed lips brushed hers at first. Timidly, his hands found her waist. Later, they wouldn't be sure who deepened the kiss. Willa's fingers grasped his sweatshirt, pulling him down to her body. The need to breathe reached its last point and their faces retracted.

Slowly, Willa opened her eyes to see Philby searching her face. Both were red in the face, smiling. Neither of their body positions moved Willa couldn't tell you how long they stood there. It may perhaps have been seconds or years of staring, smiling, and breathing in the same air.

Philby was the first to talk. "I suppose that was _good night_?"

Willa nodded, she let go of his sweatshirt and lay her hands flat on his chest. "I suppose it was. "

The boy slowly took his hands off her waist and backed away.

* * *

- - - 3 WEEKS LATER - - -

"Something is up with Willa," Amanda stated. She was sitting across from Jess and Charlene in the restaurant, on Friday night. The place was bustling with people. "These past few weeks she has been totally out of it."

"I know!" Charlene interjected. "She is barely ever at the dorm anymore. I hardly see her, except when I wake up in the middle of the night."

Jess looked at her sister and friend_, if only they knew_. "Why don't you try to ask her?"

"I do!" jess clarified. "Her response is always the same. Nothing. Nada."

"Maybe we just need a group interrogation," Amanda blindly suggested. "We can all sit her down together."

"When are you going to talk to her?" Jess asked. Part of her hated knowing the secret. She would never tell anyone but she sensed something about this plan was not going to make Willa happy.

"Ooh!" Charlie perked up. "That big Halloween party is tomorrow night. Of course, Willa is NOT planning on going. We will just have to surprise her with a costume and force her to join us."

Jess grimaced, "I don't like the sound of that."

"Think positive Jess," Amanda chided. "Finn will be here soon. I know he will be on our side. He has known her longer than any of us. He just has to stop by his dorm then he will join us. He can help us."

Willa was sitting in her room struggling to do her homework. As soon as she turned on the blue laptop she received for Christmas last year, she knew something was wrong. Her problems only continued when the internet wouldn't work. She assumed it was a bad WIFI feed. Then the system would upload the big project she was working on. It ended when the screen went black and shut down.

"UGH!" she groaned. "Stupid technology," She gave up on trying turning it on after ten minutes and took out her phone.

Philby sat on his bed, his computer resting on his legs.

"Hey, Pops," he waved at the computer screen. An old man's face shone brightly. He had grey hair and the same pale blue eyes as Philby.

"Dell? Are you there?" he asked. "Can you hear me?"

"I can hear you Grandpa," Philby nodded.

"How is my grandson doing?" his voice was thickly accented.

"I'm great," Philby answered. It had become a tradition of sorts to Skype with his relatives overseas once a month. And Philby's Grandfather had expected him at the same time every last Friday of the month. This was no exception.

They would both get on their computers and log-in t the site. The conversation usually lasted on the latest conditions. _What's the weather like? How's school? Has Mom gone crazy yet?_ Then they would log off and speak again in the next month.

As the spoke, Philby felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. Willa's name popped up on the screen next to the picture of her laughing on one of their dates.

The couple had made a habit of getting up late on Sunday mornings and going to the local book store and heading out to brunch. It was the quiet mornings where they strolled through the now chilly air with coffee in one hand and the other holding the opposite hand between them. it was usually filled with soft kisses and small laughter.

This picture was one Philby had snapped of her intently reading the back cover of a book. Her face was indifferent but lovely at the angle the boy had snapped a shot from.

"Hold on one second?" he asked out of politeness.

"I'm not going anywhere."

Philby laughed. His grandfather had a strange sense of humor for being so old. Dell moved his computer off his lap and turned the volume down just a bit. He answered the phone.

"Hello," he responded, smiling.

"Philby!" her voice jumped as if she wasn't expecting him to respond.

'Willa!" he answered using the same tone.

She huffed, "that's not funny, Dell."

Philby laughed, "I'm sorry, truly." He couldn't help that sometimes she was too adorable for her own good.

"I didn't think I would catch you. I thought you said you were busy tonight?"

The boy had told her he had to catch up with relatives and that's why they couldn't get together. She, thankfully, agreed. It wasn't until hearing her voice on the other end of the receiver that Philby registered how much he missed her since yesterday.

"I just took a break for a second. I can talk for a little while. What's up?"

Her voice shied. "I need your help."

"What happened?" Philby suddenly became frantic.

"Umm. . ."

"Willa, what's wrong?" he was off his bed searching for his shoes just incase he had to go get her.

"Nothing serious. I, uh," she started, "I think I broke my computer." Philby let out a breathy laugh, of course that was all it was. "Is there any way you are not too busy to help me?"

"No! I mean yes! I mean-ah, you know what I mean. Bring it over to my place."

"Thank you! You are my hero! I will be over in ten minutes . . . does that sound okay?"

"Perfect. I will be here."

"See you soon," the line went dead.

Philby turned back to the computer resting on his duvet. He went to turn the voice volume back up. he realized then that the process had never been completed.

He panicked.

Maybe by lucky chance the old man hadn't heard the conversation.

"Hey, Pop, I have to go now so-"

"Clean up your room. If that girl comes by, she is never going to want to see you again in that mess." Philby's face visibly reddened. So much for luck. "I heard the whole thing, son."

"You did?"

"Don't worry I was your age once."

Philby gulped, "It's nothing serious," he lied.

"The look on your face implies otherwise." There was no getting around this old man. "Is she pretty?"

The young man sighed, "Unbelievably."

"Smart too, I bet."

"Brilliant." He told him, "extraordinarily smart."

"Good for you son," his grandfather said. "How long has this been going on?"

"I've known her for almost two months now. "

The man on the screen smiled. "I can tell she is special. Do you know yet?"

"Know what? That she is special? Yes, ever since I laid eyes on her."

"No," he shook his head violently. "Do you love her? Do you think she is _it_? The love you have waited for."

Philby thought for a moment, looking at his keyboard. This morning, the last thing he thought he would be doing was getting a pep-talk from his grandpa. "I think she might be," he nearly whispered.

"I hope you tell her then," he advised. "Soon, and keep her close to your heart. Maybe when we all come across for the holiday I can meet her."

"Maybe," Philby thought of what it would be like to introduce her to his family. He hadn't thought about it before. His family knew he had relationships but he couldn't think of the last time he brought a girl home, or if he had ever. "I will talk to you soon Pop." And the two shut down the program.

Dell took the old man's advice. He shoved his shoes quickly under his single bed. On the other side of the room, was a bunk bed. Belonging to his roommates there was nothing he could do about their untidiness. Philby was reduced to the old way that he cleaned as a seven-year old, shoving everything under the bed hastily.

Soon enough, a knock came to his door. Willa. She had only been there once before. And that time it was only for a few minutes.

Philby opened the door. She stood there, fingers grasped around the strap of her leather messenger bag, hair that had been French braided fell out in curly strands around her ears, and she wore a blue university sweatshirt, tight-fitting work-out pants, and a warm, timid smile on that beautiful face.

He opened the door for her to come in.

"I'm sorry if I am ruining your peaceful night." she bounced inside. Her eyes ran around the room. He closed the door silently.

Philby shrugged. "It's alright. I was actually going to call you later."

Willa turned back abruptly. "Did Dell Philby miss me?" she said sarcastically smirking, taking a step closer to him.

The boy lightly grasped her arms above the elbows and leaned down. "A little," he replied honestly. To prove it, he gave her a sweet but passionate kiss on the lips.

"That's okay," she responded in a hushed tone when his lips released hers. "I did to."

"I knew you broke your computer on purpose."

Willa stepped back pretending to be mad. The idea was entirely false, had to admit the odds were turning in her favor. "That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard!"

"I'm kidding!" he said, looking pleased with himself. "Let me see this bloody thing."

Willa unzipped her bag and took out the device. She handed it over to him.

Philby sat down at his worn out wooden desk in front of the window and began to work. He was pressing buttons and punching in codes, taking out the battery and looking into the hard drive. Willa had no clue what he could be looking for but she let him work. She observed for a while, admiring the way his eyes lit up when he found something, how he mumbled to himself and stuck out his tongue slightly as he worked.

Not wanting to put pressure on him while he worked, though she thought she could stare at him for days and never be bored, Willa preoccupied herself. She straightened out his blankets in the bed. Organized the pens and pencils in the pencil holder on the desk, and daydreamed out the window, all before returning to lounge on the bed with a book she stole off Philby's nightstand.

"Ah-ha!" his voice wrung out. "I think that's it." He swiveled around in the chair, to face her.

Willa looked up with expectant eyes. "You did it?" she asked.

All he did was gesture with his hand to the working screen.

Willa jumped up from the bed, "Yes! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" she kissed the top of his head, as she stood over him. "You are a genius! I owe you so much."

"You know," Philby started. "You could, now, call me the talented one in this relationship."

He spun around in his chair. Willa and him were nose-to-nose.

"Dell Philby," she over-dramatized, "Is more talented than me, Isabella Angelo." A smile spread across his face. The idea of being the _talented_ one was an ongoing joke between the two of them. "But only when it comes to computers," Willa finished.

Now, she was the one smiling. Philby stood up from his chair to gain height on her. Willa didn't step back.

"That's mean, Angelo." Philby went for a false jab at her stomach. It wasn't harsh, he just brushed, but she squirmed. "Wait a second," Willa tried to compose herself again but it was too late. "Are you ticklish?"

"Psh-no." Willa replied. "You just scared me." It was a total lie. Willa couldn't even imagine ever being scared of the boy.

"Oh, really?" Willa nodded. "So you wouldn't be mad if I did . . . this."

Philby's fingers went for her waist. Tickling her as she struggled and laughed.

The boy picked her up by the waist and set her down on the bed. His fingers were still going at her as she told him to stop. His hands found their way under her sweatshirt.

Willa felt his fingers delicately tracing her stomach. Suddenly she had an idea to make him stop.

Willa sat up to the Philby sitting above her. She reached behind his head and pulled him down on her body, kissing him. The idea was to distract him into stopping her abuse, but she found herself getting just as distracted. Her hands knotted themselves in the curly read hair on the back of his neck. She felt heat race through her body. Philby's right hand moved under her back. She felt the burn of his fingertips through the thin fabric of an undershirt, sending sparks throughout her body. His other arm had moved out from under her sweatshirt and was supporting his body over her own. Slowly, his lips parted hers open.

Oh, was she going to thank the computer-killing-gods later.

Their mouths released and the blinked open in surprise. Neither spoke. Only for a moment did they catch a breath before realizing the pain of separation. They returned to kissing.

Willa's hands roamed from the back of his neck over his shoulders, his spine. Philby felt the electricity just as she had.

They had never kissed like this. With so much want.

Philby's lips traveled from her lips, down her jaw, and neck, and back to the ready lips.

Both two preoccupied to hear the noise at the door as it opened.

"What the hell?!" a boys voice rang out.

Willa's back fell against the mattress. Philby released her lips immediately, and sat up.

Instead of rising, Willa rolled her head to the side.

A boy stood in the doorway.

A boy with brown hair, and green eyes wide with shock. Willa had seen him before. They had gone to school together for eight years. Their parents lived down the street from each other. But what was he doing here?

"What's going on here?" he asked.


End file.
